Martial Arts News

Chael Sonnen is facing 11 charges — including felony battery by strangulation — for his role in an alleged hotel fight in Las Vegas this past December.

TMZ Sports first brought word that prosecutors filed the charges against the UFC veteran last week. Sonnen is also facing 10 misdemeanor battery charges for the incident. According to court records, Sonnen committed battery against six victims during the altercation. Sonnen is accused of choking one man, striking a woman and punching or kneeing others in the face at the Luxor Hotel and Casino.

Sonnen was initially hit with five battery citations, but was not arrested because police did not witness the incident, although video showed the former fighter being led away in handcuffs. The case was dismissed in Nevada court “without prejudice,” which means the state had the option of refiling the case.

A cause for the incident is unknown, but Sonnen was seen banging on the door of a hotel room at approxmately 7 a.m. …

Bellator bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis will not be part of Bellator’s bantamweight grand prix as originally planned.

An injury has forced Pettis to withdraw from a proposed opening round clash against Raufeon Stots at Bellator 279, and as a result, Juan Archuleta will step in for the reigning 135-pound champion. Promotion officials confirmed the news following an initial report from CBS Sports. An interim title will be on the line when Archuleta and Stots square off on April 23.

The exact nature of Pettis’ injury was not disclosed, but the Roufusport standout did release a statement via social media revealing that his ailment will require surgery and a lengthy recovery process.

“Well, some things aren’t meant to be,” Pettis wrote. “Unfortunately hurt myself bad last week during training, was waiting for the results and it turns out I’ll be out for the next [six to nine] months. I’ll be getting my first surgery after years of competing which happens to be…

Bellator will head to Ireland for a third time within a one-year span with a card featuring two of the country’s fan favorites.

The California-based promotion announced on Tuesday that it will return to the 3Arena in Dublin on Sept. 23, and both Peter Queally and Sinead Kavanagh will compete at the event. Opponents and other bouts are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. Bellator 275 took place in Dublin on Feb. 25, as did Bellator 270 this past November.

Queally will return to action after an injury forced him to withdraw from a proposed bout against Kane Mousah at Bellator 275. The Dublin native last appeared at Bellator 270, where he fell to Patricky Freire via second-round TKO in a rematch with the lightweight title on the line.

Kavanagh, meanwhile, is coming off a unanimous decision win over Leah McCourt at Bellator 275. Kavanagh had been tabbed for a championship rematch against Cristiane Justino, but a knee injury suffered against McCourt delayed…

PFL Regular Season Opens April 20th on ESPN 👊

Which matchup are you most looking forward to? pic.twitter.com/Rx4ItyIqgB

— PFL (@PFLMMA) March 22, 2022 The matchups are official for Professional Fighters League’s 2022 season opening event.

The card, which spotlights lightweights and light heavyweights, will be headlined by a lightweight clash between 2021 champion Raush Manfio and two-time UFC veteran Don Madge. PFL 1: 2022 Regular Season takes place at ESports Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on April 20 and will also see ex-UFC champ Anthony Pettis face PFL newcomer Myles Price in a 155-pound co-main event.

The rest of the main card, which airs on ESPN beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, will see defending light heavyweight champion Antonio Carlos Jr. square off against Delan Monte, while UFC vets Jeremy Stephens and Clay Collard will lock horns in another lightweight tilt.

The main card will be preceded by a six-bout preliminary …

@ColbyCovMMA pic.twitter.com/IPUp61ICV1

— Jorge Masvidal UFC (@GamebredFighter) March 22, 2022

Apparently Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal didn’t get the closure they needed from their headlining fight at UFC 272.

The UFC welterweights allegedly got into an altercation at Papi Steak restaurant in Miami on Monday night, which resulted in police being called to the scene. Andy Slater was first to report the incident via Twitter.

Meanwhile, TMZ Sports obtained video of Covington outside the restaurant following the alleged scuffle at approximately 11:30 p.m. ET. Covington was eating at the restaurant earlier with a group that included social media personality and podcast host Bob Menery. Masvidal did not eat at the restaurant, according to the report. However, there was video circulating of Covington inside the establishment from earlier in the evening.

Covington was overheard in the video asking Menery, “How would [Masvidal] know I…

Jimmie Rivera is the latest Ultimate Fighting Championships veteran to take his talents to Bare Knuckle FC.

The promotion announced on Monday that the former UFC bantamweight has signed with BKFC, with an opponent to be announced soon. His debut will come at BKFC 25 on May 6 in Orlando, Fla.

“EL TERROR” HAS ARRIVED @JimmieRivera135 #SIGNED

Fight announcement coming this week. Any guesses pic.twitter.com/enWjDbKCn3

— Bare Knuckle FC (@bareknucklefc) March 21, 2022

Rivera, 32, last appeared in the Octagon at UFC Fight Night 186, where he dropped a unanimous verdict to Pedro Munhoz on Feb. 27, 2021. “El Terror” lost three of his last four UFC outings dating back to 2019, with other setbacks coming against Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling.

The Team Tiger Schulmann representative joined the UFC riding the momentum of a 15-bout winning streak, and he continued that run in the Las Vegas-based organization by winning his first five figh…

The Professional Fighters League 2022 regular season officially has a pair of host cities for its events.

The promotion announced Monday that Esports Stadium Arlington in Arlington Texas, will be the site for regular season cards on April 20, April 28 and May 6, while events on June 17, June 24 and July 1 will be held in Atlanta. A venue was not announced for the Atlanta dates.

“After our renewal with ESPN, the Professional Fighters League Season is back and we’re excited to bring the best fighters in the world to Arlington and Atlanta,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray. “The PFL continues to disrupt the sport of MMA with our unique season format, innovative SmartCage technology and elite talent, with 2022 set to be our biggest year yet.”

The kickoff event for PFL’s 2022 campaign will feature lightweights and light heavyweights on April 20. The prelims air on ESPN+ and ESPN at 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT, while the main card will be broadcast on ESPN at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvr-bUb3p-E&w=560&h=315]

Francis Ngannou just knocked off one interim heavyweight champion when he defeated Ciryl Gane in a title unification bout at UFC 270 this past January.

He may very well have to do it again when he returns from knee surgery. Shortly after Ngannou took a five-round verdict over Gane, his manager revealed that “The Predator” would undergo surgery to repair injuries to his MCL and ACL suffered in training ahead of that bout. The ensuing recovery process would require at least nine months. Ngannou underwent the procedure on Friday in Los Angeles, which included a full reconstruction on his ACL.

At the UFC Fight Night 204 post-fight press conference on Saturday, Dana White acknowledged the possibility that another interim heavyweight belt could be created in Ngannou’s absence.

“It’s very possible,” White said. “We find out this week [how long he’s out].

“If nine months is true, if it’s going to tak…

Raise the stakes, and Arnold Allen promises that he’ll only keep getting better.

The Englishman won his ninth consecutive bout in the UFC Fight Night 204 co-main event, stopping former lightweight contender Dan Hooker via TKO at the 2:33 mark of Round 1 in their 145-pound clash at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday. After a run of four straight decision wins, Allen knew it was important to make a statement. That he did, going toe-to-toe with one of the sport’s renowned action fighters and winning a firefight in emphatic fashion.

“It’s huge. To be honest, I know I’m a finisher,” Allen said at the post-fight press conference. “I know I’m a decision guy really, I’m pretending now, but I’ve got the power in my hands. All my coaches tell me I hit hard, I put people down with body shots in sparring. It just doesn’t come out in the fight. I think the kind of style of opponents I’ve fought haven’t allowed me to fight that way. I nearly had it in the last fight (vs. Sodiq Yus…

As impressive as Tom Aspinall was at UFC Fight Night 204, he says he only scratched the surface regarding his overall skillset in a first-round submission of Alexander Volkov in Saturday’s main event.

“I didn’t really show much,” Aspinall said at the post-fight press conference. “I keep it that way every time if I can. I want to be the biggest mystery in heavyweight MMA. These people think they know about me — nobody knows about me. These people think they know what they’re up against — nobody knows what they’re up against. Let’s keep it a secret.”

Aspinall became the first person since 2010 to make Volkov tap, and looked more impressive than highly-ranked heavyweights such as Ciryl Gane and Curtis Blaydes have against the Russian veteran.

“It couldn’t have gone any better,” Aspinall said. “That was the ideal performance. I truly thought I was gonna go five rounds. To get a guy like Volkov — who has been finished twice [in the UFC] — out of there in the first ro…

Outside of its pay-per-view schedule, the Ultimate Fighting Championship has been content to hold events at its home base of the UFC Apex the past two years.

That’s due in large part to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has made traveling throughout the year a far more difficult task. The Las Vegas-based promotion returned to London on Saturday for the first time since before the pandemic, and the UFC Fight Night 204 card delivered in a big way.

All told, the event set gate records for the O2 Arena and for a UFC Fight Night card. The fighters performed as well and were rewarded for their efforts: All nine who scored finishes received $50,000 bonuses at the end of the night. As it stands, UFC Fight Night 204 is an early frontrunner for “Event of the Year.”

“It seriously could not go any better. It was f—-ing unbelievable,” UFC president Dana White said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “Everybody’s been locked up for two and a half years. So many kid…

There was a special feel to Paddy Pimblett’s victory at UFC Fight Night 204 at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday.

While it was only the second Octagon appearance for the former Cage Warriors title holder, and he was facing a relatively unheralded foe in Rodrigo Vargas, Paddy “The Baddy” electrified the crowd in his home country with a rear-naked choke victory at the 3:49 mark of Round 1 in a featured lightweight bout. Pimblett is now 2-0 in the UFC, and it feels as though he might be someone the promotion would be willing to throw its marketing might behind.

“Without being a big-headed tool, I am the star of the show,” Pimblett said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “It’s that simple.Expect me to take over the show. I told you this. This is the ‘Baddy’ show. Swept The O2 right up.”

The performance would seemingly set the stage for a future clash with Ilia Topuria, who authored a scintillating knockout of Jai Herbert at 155 pounds on the main card. Pimb…